A number of pharmaceutical suppliers manufacture and sell compartmented tubular devices adapted for performing standard tests on a plurality of color coded biochemical media simultaneously. This is done by means of an inoculator wire which is first dipped into a selected bacteria colony and then interposed and pulled longitudinally through a series of aligned intramural openings in the compartmented multimedia tubular device.
A particular problem which arises in packaging and transporting these multimedia tubular members for laboratory use in the maintenance of a strict sterility in each of the media-filled compartments prior to inoculation with selected bacteria by means of the inoculating wire. It is thus important prior to use to provide hermetical seals between the longitudinally interposed inoculating wire and the aligned intramural openings between compartments in which the wire is removably disposed. This is normally done by providing a wax seal around each of the openings after the inoculating wire is in place for packaging or shipment.
In the prior art, it was necessary to provide these intramural seals by manually deploying a hyperdermic needle or similar device to each opening individually, and dispensing a globule of wax. In a later prior art development by applicant, all of the openings in each of the compartments were treated simultaneously by suspending the multicompartmented tubular member across the top of a vat of molten wax and deploying a reciprocating comb to pick up wax from the vat and bring it into contact with a portion of the inoculating wire in each of the compartments. The compartmented tubular member was then disposed vertically to close an electrical circuit of which the inoculating wire forms a part, causing the wax from each of the portions of the inoculating wire to flow into and seal the intramural openings of the compartments. In this particular prior-art embodiment, the prongs of the comb were rounded on the top, making it difficult, if not impossible, for the reciprocating comb to bring enough wax in contact with the inoculating wire to form a proper intramural seal between the aligned opening in each of the compartments and the interposed inoculating wire when the wire is heated with the tubular member in vertical position during a second operation sealing step.